Toronto Silent Film Festival: A Night at the Movies 1920s Style

Opening Night of the Toronto Silent Film Festival
A Night at the Movies–with a 1920s jazz age attitude to celebrate both the return of the original GOLD DIGGERS to audiences and its 100th Anniversary.
Movie going audiences of a century ago had a much different experience going to the movies and not just the live accompaniment. We’re recreating what it was like in a cinema with cartoons, a serial chapter, newsreels and human interest stories in addition to the feature film. What’s more, each of the shorts is somehow involved with a “lost” theme. The rare cartoon was never originally released (and it comes from the founder of a very famous studio), the serial chapter was once lost, the scenes are from a lost US community, newreels & interest stories to astound you.
But we’re all here for The Gold Diggers–once lost for close to a century, it was recently found in the UK in pristine condition and you’ll be the 1st Canadian audience to see it in 100 years. A prestige picture from Warner Bros. showcased Hope Hampton & Louise Fazenda in feature roles–and it ticks all the boxes for flapper fun-a jazz age mix of parties, costumes, backstage shenanigans, cocktails –you name it, it has it. While the film is not complete, all the story is there and they have bridging intertitles for the missing scenes.
Synopsis-“Stephen refuses to allow his nephew to marry Violet, a chorus girl, as he judges all chorus girls are “gold diggers” and after money. Jerry, Violet’s friend, decides to use reverse psychology and vamps Stephen to show him what real gold digging really is and to show that Violet in contrast is as unselfish and loving as she appears. However, things go very off script when Jerry falls hard for Stephen.
Favourite Intertitle “They’re just good, honest, hardworking girls. They’re working us as hard as they can”
Bonus: you’ll see & hear how the film collector Josh Cattermole came to find this lost treasure.
Live accompaniment by Marilyn Lerner
Festival runs April 14-16 at the Revue Cinema
Festival Passes also available
Advance tickets available from Eventbrite https://www.eventbrite.ca/cc/2023-festival-1633669